


A Ring of Fire

by QueenPotema



Series: A Dark and Jeweled Sky [2]
Category: Naruto
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:40:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25718200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenPotema/pseuds/QueenPotema
Summary: "I don't understand what you don't understand." Izuna half growls, tired of trying to explain himself, "We need someone to keep the peace here. To deter criminals, and catch them when determent is not enough. You cannot expect everyone in this village to act civilized just because they are here."Tobirama opens his mouth and then closes it again, contemplating."If the Hokage's will is fire, that makes him the sun. Everyone reveres the sun. But there has to be balance. There has to be a moon for them to revere when there is no other light. And sometimes, the moon eclipses the sun. Let me eclipse you in this." Izuna says, hoping he was understood this time.
Relationships: Senju Hashirama/Uzumaki Mito, Senju Tobirama/Uchiha Izuna
Series: A Dark and Jeweled Sky [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1864837
Comments: 39
Kudos: 126





	1. Prologue: Penumbra

**Author's Note:**

> And my dumb corny moon refences continue!!!!! Mwahahahahaha!!!!!!
> 
> That's the flavor of the series though. (Also no one can stop me.)
> 
> This story is the second chronologically in the Dark and Jeweled Sky series, and it focuses on Izuna and Tobirama's relationship, a bit on the growing village, and a lot on the creation of the police force much earlier than in canon in response to a violent crime. It is pretty close time wise to Under the Gleaming Silver Moon, so enjoy more feels carried over from that too. Because healing is a process that goes on until the day you die. (Also I'm evil :3)
> 
> This part is short, because it's just a prologue of sorts to get us set up to roll. Other than that, there will be four parts to this story, roughly 3000 - 4000 words a piece so... RIP my one hand.
> 
> You may thank @KingSunWukong for this being beta'd and therefore readable. XD
> 
> Enjoy!

Izuna awakens slowly. The warmth of the sunlight and the man who has his arms haphazardly wrapped around him threatens to just pull him back into slumber. But it is already late in the morning, and if he indulges in more sleep, he won't wake up until noon more likely than not. He knows the man he's snuggled against won't wake up until then if left to his own devices either, and they will both be up well into the night finishing the day's work if they do that, which will only serve to keep the vicious cycle going. (If Izuna is going to be kept up into the wee hours, it won't be for paperwork, that is for sure.)

With this in mind, Izuna sighs and pries himself out of Tobirama's arms and out of the bed.

"Come on Tobi, time to wake up." Izuna chirps as he stretches his pleasantly sore body.

Tobirama just replaces Izuna with a pillow and curls deeper into the covers before replying in a grumble, "Don't call me that."

Izuna chuckles as he goes to change into his clothes for the day. His adorable albino is by no one's definition, a morning person, but he already knows what is going to happen if he doesn't get up on his own in the next twenty minutes. He has been kicked out of the bed and onto the floor enough times in their six months together to learn.

Sure enough, as Izuna kneels in front of his brother's painting with a stick of incense burning, Tobirama passes through the room in silent respect and goes into the kitchen to make breakfast. Once Izuna has finished his prayer he goes to join the man and starts some tea. (Tobirama has already made coffee, but Izuna despises that bitter stuff.)

They silently perform their morning routine, and that silence isn't broken until the are at the table sharing their breakfast.

"It was today right?" Tobirama asks.

Izuna looks up from his food with a slight frown. He hadn't known if his partner was going to mention it or not, though he had been certain that Tobirama would not forget.

"Yea. He has been gone for three years now." Izuna says as he looks back at his food.

He can almost hear the albino tilting his head, "Are you okay? You don't have to come to the tower today if you need some time off. I can handle everything."

Izuna smiles softly and flicks a bit of egg at the man in reprimand, "No you can't, dummy. We are swamped and you know it. There are three new clans joining all at once after all."

And negotiations with the Nara are still a pain in the ass even after they agreed to join and brought the Yamanaka and Akimichi with them, Izuna thinks but does not add. Tobirama gets annoyed at any slight mention of the Nara after that one Nara child beat him in shoji like five times.

"I can if you need me to." Tobirama says softly.

"I'm fine, really." Izuna says, "I miss my brother of course, and this is one of the many days I miss him more than usual, but I can handle it."

Tobirama nods, "Alright. I just wanted to be sure. Don't need you to be lacking when we face those sly bastards."

Izuna laughs, "Are you seriously still pissy because a kid beat you at a board game?"

"I am 'pissy' as you so eloquently put it, because they are nitpicking every single detail of the treaty like I have the time or energy to try and slight new clans." Tobirama snarls, "If they used those allegedly superior brains of theirs, they would know that doing that would make no sense. We want Konoha to grow and prosper, which means we need new clans, which means that since tricking a clan into unfair terms would be a massive deterrent to others, it would be beyond stupid to try and do that."

"In all fairness, I am certain they know that you would be smart enough to see that, but they think the treaty was drafted by the Hokage, not you." Izuna says.

Tobirama glares at him, which is his only warning before a foot slams into his shin.

"Ouch!" Izuna coos mockingly as it didn't really hurt and it's fun to ruffle his boyfriend's feathers. He grabs the dishes and heads towards the sink. (Running water and indoor plumbing are two of Tobirama's many ingenious developments.) 

Tobirama huffs and follows him leaning against the counter as he works, "They probably do think that. Everybody does. Anija couldn't draft a proper treaty to save his life. He's great a negotiating and speaking, but he's nearly worthless with actual work."

Izuna laughs at that, "Funny, I guess opposites do attract. Madara was exactly the opposite way."

Tobirama stares at him incredulously for a few seconds. He hasn't branched out beyond Hikaku in talking about Madara in ways that aren't vague, and he rarely says his brother's name at all. It is easier now though, and he wants Tobirama to know about Madara beyond the terror he knew in war.

"Right." Tobirama says eventually, and cautiously, "I can see that. He screamed allot on the battlefield."

Izuna smiles fondly, "Mostly your brother's name there. But he screamed everywhere else too."

"What was that hideous thing he always swung around?" Tobirama asks, a little braver now.

The younger man slams down the last of the dishes into the drying tray, feigning offense, "It was a gunbai, a sacred Uchiha weapon!"

Tobirama blinks at the outburst, hackles raising a bit, because he can't tell if Izuna is seriously upset or not.

Izuna relaxes his posture with a giggle, "It was hideous though wasn't it?"

"You," Tobirama sighs partially out of relief and partially out of exasperation, "Are a menace to society."

"Only on Mondays." Izuna says, "The rest of the time, I'm your menace."

"Wha- Why Mondays?" Tobirama mumbles mostly to himself.

"Because." Izuna says resolutely. He then leans in and stops the next question that would have escaped Tobirama with a kiss.

He steals a few more chaste pecks holding himself on his toes by wrapping his arms around Tobirama's solid shoulders. Tobirama leans down and presses their foreheads together afterwards, and Izuna feels a deep rush of affection.

"I love you," Izuna whispers against Tobirama's lips. 

Tobirama sputters and shoves Izuna away, "I- clothes! I have to go get dressed!"

And with that, he flashes away with his Hiraishin to his own house (He insisted that most of his things stay there so he could get ready and leave from there and no one would see him coming and going from Izuna's house.) leaving Izuna behind, somewhat confused and very hurt.

A bit dazed by the emotions Izuna lets himself slump down the wall Tobirama had thrown him into and to the ground. Sure, it was the first time he'd told the Senju how he felt but... Does he not feel the same? Is he just a warm body to the Senju? But Tobirama has always been receptive to his physical shows of affection, the hugs and cuddles, why would he be so if he didn't feel anything for Izuna? 

Izuna glances outside and feels unexplainable foreboding along with his hurt.

"I think I made a mistake Aniki..." He whispers to nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, this is only a prologue, longer chapters on the way!
> 
> Thanks for the read, drop a like and a comment if you want!


	2. Part One: Umbra

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is unbeta'd. I die like a true shinobi here. 
> 
> Please, enjoy this trainwreck of a chapter, I really like it for some reason. >:)

To say the day in the office becomes awkward with a quickness would be a severe understatement. Tobirama makes a valiant effort to avoid Izuna as much as possible, which makes the younger man furious. If his feelings aren't returned, then the albino needs to just tell him, so he doesn't have to wonder and worry like this. 

Everyone around them seems to notice the tension between them, but none of them understand because they kept their relationship a secret. At least Izuna understands now why Tobirama wanted that. 

Well one thing is for damn sure, the albino doesn't get to hide from this forever. Even if he only wanted sex, even if Izuna's love is entirely one-sided, Izuna wants to hear that. Tobirama owes him an answer regardless of what it is. 

* * *

Izuna gives his love three days. Three very awkward days of avoiding him like the plague and leaving him to sleep alone in a cold bed before he gets fed up. 

On the third day, when Tobirama does not show up in his house at dusk, Izuna works himself into a fit of pique and goes to track him down. He isn't at his own house, which Izuna should have guessed honestly. Who hides from someone at their own house? A quick scan of the immediate area gives no signs of the man or his chakra. 

Next step, ask someone who is absolutely sure to know where he is. He pounds on Hashirama's door unabashedly until the man comes to the door.

"Gods, Izuna what is it?" Hashirama asks, obviously annoyed.

"Where is your brother?" Izuna demands.

"Tobi? He's still at the office. He said he had some things to finish before he went home. Why?" The Hokage answers with a tilted head.

"That lying bastard!" Izuna shouts. Tobirama had told him he was leaving for the day right before he had left himself. He ignores Hashirama's questions and takes off for the tower.

He is so angry by the time he gets there that he silently enters the office they share and shuts the door behind him just as quietly. Madara would be screaming and breaking things and spitting fire by this point of anger, but Izuna has a quiet calculating temperament when it comes to things like this.

"Izuna," Tobirama greets quietly.

The Uchiha remains silent as he leans against the door, waiting for an explanation.

"Is there a problem?" Tobirama has the audacity to ask.

Izuna feels his Sharingan flare to life, but he still smiles pleasantly, "No, not at all. It's just, something weird happened, and I thought I should tell you."

Tobirama blinks slowly, "Okay?"

"Yeah, you see, I've been with this guy for awhile now! And I thought things were fine, you know? We were happy together. I thought that anyway. But then I tried to tell him how I felt, that I loved him, and instead of telling me he loved me back, or telling me he wasn't ready for that, or even telling me I was just a fun fuck buddy to him, like a fucking adult, he ran out on me! That's so weird right?" Izuna snarls.

Tobirama remains silent and stares at his desk, so the younger man presses on, "It really fucking weird, because I am positive he is older than me by three whole years, and I know I'm an adult so why would he act like such a child and leave me wondering what I'd done wrong for three days?" 

Izuna waits a few heartbeats before asking his next question, "So Tobirama, what do you feel? Was I just meaningless fun to you?"

His only response is a hand running through silver locks. He feels Tobirama start infusing chakra and lunges to catch the man by his arm, "Not today. You are not hiding from me anymore damnit! Whatever it is, just fucking tell me already! I am a grown ass man, I can take it!"

Tobirama sighs deeply before finally breaking his silence, "I didn't know if you were serious or not. I panicked."

"You… You thought I was fucking kidding about loving you?! Do you have any idea how _stupid_ that sounds _mister genius_?!" Izuna snaps.

"You make me guess what you might be really feeling _all the time._ You never make sense, you never give me a straight answer about _anything_ , you have never even told me why you wanted me in your bed to start with! How the fuck am I supposed to know anything for sure when all you want to do is _make me guess?_ Do you have any semblance of self awareness at all?!" Tobirama snaps back as he yanks his arm out of Izuna's grip, "Give me one reason I truly had to believe you were serious, and then I will concede you the right to be pissed off at me for something that is entirely _your fault_!"

"I am an Uchiha! I don't even tell _family_ I love them without being certain I actually do! I would never, _ever_ , play with anyone's feelings like that. But that's you MO isn't it?!"

"I still do not understand why you are blaming this on me!"

"You seemed perfectly fine with letting me fuck you, you had no problem acting like you loved me even when we weren't having sex, and now you're concerned about _me_ playacting? You were the one doing that, not me." Izuna feels frustrated angry tears welling up in his eyes and he fights to hold them back.

"What are you even talking about?!"

Izuna has to restrain himself from pulling his own hair out, "I'm talking about all the cuddling! Staying with me all through the night! I'm talking about the mornings together, and cooking for me like you do, and the way you look at me! I thought… I thought that you…"

Tobirama just stands there chest heaving from the veritable screaming match and once again falls silent.

Izuna slumps and turns around so he can let the tears fall without them being seen, "If you only wanted a physical relationship you should have told me that before I… you know what?! It doesn't even matter. I'm done with you!"

With that, he stomps towards the door. 

"Izuna wait!" Tobirama says fumbling to move around his desk.

"WHY?!" Izuna shrieks spinning on his heel to face the albino tears and all, "So you can play with my heart some more?! I must have literally fucked your brains out if you think I'm that pathetic! Go find another dick to sit on, I'm _done._ " 

This time, Izuna just bolts in an effort to not make even more of an ass out of himself than he already has. He regrets all of it the moment he steps through the threshold of his empty house. 

He has really gone and done it now. There is no way he can clean up this damn mess. That foreboding feeling intensifies alongside his pain. He feels as though someone or something is trying to warn him, but he pushes that aside in favor of his self loathing at what he's done.

* * *

Things get worse after that, of course. Tobirama avoids him even more if possible. Izuna realizes he is still not okay with being alone. Intrusive thoughts creep into his brain like snakes into a bird nest, and for all his outward confidence and borderline narcissism, Izuna has moments where he really, truly hates himself. Moments he would crawl into his brother's arms in his youth, and moments when he'd tuck his head under Tobirama's chin and listen to the Senju drone on about plans and jutsu theory more recently. 

He misses Tobirama's voice. He misses his brother's warmth. He goes to Hikaku for someone to talk to, to take the edge off this thorn in his heart.

"Did you mean it?" Hikaku asks quietly after Izuna explains the situation with his two year old son sleeping on his chest.

"When I said I was done with him? No, none of it. I was… hurt. That he didn't feel the same." Izuna admits softly.

Hikaku adjusts Kagami a little before responding, "I wouldn't be so sure. I mean, have you seen the dark circles under his eyes lately? And he spends way more time in his lab too, I have witnessed Hokage-sama having to actually drag him out of there. He is obviously missing you too, at the very least. I was so confused when I saw him acting that way at first, but now I get why."

Izuna studies the grain patterns of the wooden table.

"I can't give you advice this time little cousin, I don't know Tobirama well enough to try and advise you on how to go forward, but I will tell you if you want him you have to work for him. Relationships are work, all the time. A little give and take, compromise, balance. That's right up your alley, is it not?"

"I guess so." Izuna says.

Hikaku shakes his head in disappointment, probably already aware that Izuna is too afraid of being rejected again to try. It totally infuriates Izuna to find that he is right.

* * *

Hashirama, the rat bastard, is the one who tricks them into a conversation. Izuna walks into the office to find both Tobirama and the Hokage waiting for him and freezes in place.

The albino rests an angry glare on his brother, "What are you trying to pull here? You told me you need to talk to me alone, not with _him._ "

Izuna flinches at the tone directed at him, "He told me that too."

Hashirama sighs, "Listen, I don't know what has happened between the two of you-"

"Because it is none of you business and I already told you to _butt out_." Tobirama cuts in.

" _Because,_ " Hashirama hisses, "Tobi won't talk to me about it, and I'm certain you won't either Izuna, but you both need to resolve it. Avoiding each other and being hostile during meetings and refusing to work in the same office at the same time is causing way more grief than it's worth. Not to mention, the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans are arriving later today, and as the founders of Konoha, we need to appear unified. So could you _please_ just talk it out?"

"In my defence," Izuna says softly, "He is the one doing all the avoiding."

Tobirama snorts derisively, "Do you know what your problem is Izuna? You try and put the blame for your _bullshit_ off on everyone and everything else."

Izuna's chest constricts a bit and he turns his gaze to the floor.

Hashirama loses a few shades of color, maybe unaware of just how large a disconnect there was between them, "Uh, Tobi-"

"No, I didn't get a chance to say my peace last time and I am going to do so now since you want to trick people into talking to each other when they obviously have nothing good to say." Tobirama snaps.

"L-last time?" Hashirama says faintly to himself.

Tobirama turns his attention back on Izuna, and the younger man feels about an inch tall when he does, "You always make yourself the victim. There are several scenarios I could bring up, but I won't because I'm not trying to create even more cracks in your obviously broken psyche, I just want you to know, you don't get to do it this time. You were the one who started this, and you chose to end it without hearing me out, so you don't get to act like I'm the one who fucked you over, because that's not the case."

"I am sorry I didn't want to be let down even worse. Next time, I promise I'll let you totally break my heart so you can be fucking happy," Izuna snarls like a cornered animal.

Tobirama advances on him a step jabbing a finger into his chest, "See? That right there. _That's_ why you won't ever have a meaningful relationship with _anyone._ All your baseless assumptions and your 'oh woe is me' bullshit, that's why you are going to die alone. I would pity you, but that's obviously what your after." 

The next second Tobirama is gone, leaving Izuna in tears and his brother scrambling trying to catch his hand and failing epically.

Izuna lets out a choked sob and crumples to the ground like a ragdoll because that _fucking hurt_ in a raw and vicious way.

"Oh," Hashirama sighs, "Izuna. He didn't mean that. He's just… I didn't know that you two… He's angry right now, I wouldn't have done this if i had known how upset he was…"

The attempt to comfort him is a nice gesture, but Izuna can't think of anything other than the fact that his relationship with Tobirama is beyond repair and he _is_ probably going to die alone because he's too damaged to be truly loved by anyone. He heaves hiccupping ugly sobs as Hashirama awkwardly rubs his back trying to offer comfort.

* * *

Luckily, they make it through the arrival of the new clans without any significant problems. Unluckily, things return to the same way they were before Hashirama's meddling, except worse now because Izuna has no hope for reconciliation now. 

He spends most of his time working or with his cousin's family, because he doesn't trust himself to be alone. 

"You love me, right?" He asks Hikaku one night as they sit outside together sipping sake.

Hikaku stares at him like he has grown a second head, "What kind of- of course I love you! Kagami loves you too! Most of the Uchiha clan does! Why would you ever doubt that?"

Izuna shrugs and curls in on himself, "I was just making sure was all."

It's stupid. He can't stop thinking about what Tobirama said, even though people have said worse to and about him. Why is this sticking to him so relentlessly? 

"Izuna. Are you okay?" Hikaku asks, so genuinely worried that it sends another pang of pain through Izuna.

Izuna puts on a smile, "I'm fine."

"People who are fine don't have to 'make sure' they are still loved." Hikaku states.

"I just wanted to hear it. I'm fine, I swear!" Izuna chirps.

Hikaku does not look convinced, but he lets it go, "Alright. Just… you would tell me right? If you weren't okay? You would… You know you can come to me if you need to be talked down from something stupid?"

"Of course." Izuna says. He's being honest there at the very least. 

"Okay. Good." Hikaku says.

Izuna leans against his cousin with his head on his shoulder and relaxes when Hikaku brings an arm up to stroke his hair affectionately.

* * *

The only reason Izuna went for a walk so late was because he couldn't sleep. He had a nightmare, and tired or not, there was no way he would be getting back to sleep. So he ducks out of Hikaku's house and into the night.

He was unprepared for that foreboding feeling to creep up into his throat and choke him the minute he slipped into the moonlight. Izuna summons one of his caracals for company. The cat appears in a puff of smoke and flicks her tuffed ears curiously.

"Something is wrong." Izuna whispers to her.

She nods, "I feel it too. Tread carefully."

He creeps through the village near silently with his caracal at his side, his walk now a patrol. That's when a familiar smell hits him. 

"Blood," his caracal hisses. 

He swallows thickly and rounds the corner ahead, but nothing could have prepared him for what he finds. A spreading pool of blood, nearly black in the low light, and a young girl at its center, splayed haphazardly and unmoving. He slowly steps a bit closer and feels a rush of nausea when he sees how mutilated he body is. But her face is still mostly intact, and he knows her. It's the Nara girl who beat Tobirama in shoji all those months ago.

A hysterical sound escapes Izuna, and he sends his caracal for help. 

We have failed Aniki, Izuna thinks, I have failed. The world will always be this. Violence and loneliness and death and broken tiny bodies. 

As usual, nothing but growing darkness answers him.

* * *

Izuna waits silently beside Tobirama for the official report. It is awkward, to say the least, and every breath drives needles of pain into Izuna's chest. He wants to say something. Apologize maybe. But he can't muster a word. Eventually, a doctor, the Hokage, and several shinobi sweep into the room.

"Did you figure out what happened to her," Izuna pipes up immediately.

The doctor nods, "For the most part yes. We even know who did it."

"Really?" Tobirama asks in a surprised tone.

Izuna is rather surprised as well, that is a lot of information, just from the body. Must be a sloppy killer. Izuna can't wait to watch the monster burn.

That is until one of the shinobi holds up one of Tobirama's marked kunai, still wet with what is presumably the Nara girl's blood and mokuton roots wrap around the albino's legs to keep him from being able to escape.

"Senju Tobirama, you are under arrest for murder. Please do not resist, we are authorized to use lethal force." The shinobi holding the kunai says as two others move forward with seals and shackles.

Izuna feels like he was just encased in ice. He can't move an inch, and his heart is pounding.

Tobirama pulls at the roots binding him and preventing him from infusing chakra, "Anija, you can't honestly believe I did this!" 

Hashirama fixes his gaze on the ground and does not move to remove his roots.

Izuna snaps out of his trance and launches forward trying to free the albino himself, "You are all insane! You can't accuse him of this over one of the kunai he stashes around the village!"

But no one is listening and he is yanked away by a wooden branch. 

He is forced to watch as Tobirama is sealed into unconsciousness and dragged away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:)))))))))  
> Like and comment???


	3. Part Two: Antumbra

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHAHAHAHAHAHA MY INSPIRATION HAS NOT WANED LITTLE ONES!!!!!!! Please enjoy the chapter!
> 
> @KingSunWukong has once again been assigned the homework that is being my beta, and this chapter has the stamp of approval.

Izuna is outraged when he is finally let free. Despite the fights they have had lately, despite the cruel words and the crumbling relationship, Izuna still loves Tobirama. And he knows the albino is innocent. His brother of all people should have that faith in him as well, and the fact that Tobirama apparently cannot count on that trust from Hashirama makes Izuna positively _livid._

The Hokage managed to slip away right after releasing Izuna from his branches in the commotion of Tobirama being dragged away, but the Uchiha makes short work of tracking the older man down and bursting through the window of the office he holed up in. He slams the window open so violently the panes shake barely managing to absorb the shock and spare the glass from shattering. 

Hashirama doesn't startle like he usually does, he just groans as if he was expecting and dreading Izuna's arrival. He absolutely should have been.

"Senju, _what the fuck?!_ " Izuna shrieks as he rounds the desk to face the man.

"Izuna. I'm not sure why you are so upset about this given the animosity between you two lately, but you can review all of the evidence if you need proof. Just… let me be." Hashirama mumbles with his hands fisted in his hair.

"Fuck you, I want you to explain this so called evidence to me. I want to hear from your mouth what could possibly be so damning that you would have your own brother put in a cell like a criminal! He is innocent and you should know that!" Izuna snarls.

Hashirama's gaze snaps to meet his, "Do you think this is what I wanted? My brother _murdered_ a defenceless _child._ This village was built to protect children and he slaughtered one in cold blood. That kunai branded with his anchor was found _inside that little girl's chest cavity_. He shoved it there while she was still alive! No one but him has access to those kunai, how did it get inside that girl if he didn't put it there!"

"Have you lost your fucking mind!? Those kunai are hidden all over the village and you know that!" 

"EXACTLY. They are _hidden_. No one else besides Tobirama knows where they are!"

"Let's say for a moment that your argument isn't total bullshit, and nobody on the planet could ever have found one of those kunai. Why would Tobirama, the most obsessively meticulous person I have ever met, leave anything behind to connect him to the crime? He has never been sloppy, why would he start now knowing the consequences?! Hell, give me one reason why he would have even wanted to kill a random Nara girl when he knows we just completed an alliance with them and things are still rocky, and I will willingly go along with your story!"

"He obviously didn't think the Nara would allow an autopsy. He hid his weapon in her body, with no autopsy nothing would have connected him to the crime at all. As for reasoning, Tobirama said himself that he hated the Nara!"

Izuna stares incredulously at the man before him. That he actually believes those things is… unfathomable. 

"So you think Tobirama murdered a little girl because he was a little frustrated with her clan? Or are you trying to say he did it because she beat him at a board game? That's absolutely ridiculous!"

"I don't know why!" Hashirama screams, leaping up from his chair and pushing into Izuna's space, "I can't come up with a single reason why he would do this, just like I do not know why he would be as cruel to you as he was, and I do not know why he would want to resurrect dead rats, and I have no goddamn idea why he never talks to me about anything! The fact of the matter is that his kunai was in a clan child's chest and it did not put itself there, and I don't know how or why he put it there because as usual, he didn't deem it important to talk to his brother! Now I don't really care if you are convinced or not, because this has absolutely nothing to do with you, so run along while I deal with this mess!"

Izuna huffs, "I don't know why I bothered with you. You obviously have no loyalty whatsoever. I will prove he is innocent, and when I do, you can beg him for forgiveness and hope he is not as spiteful as I am." 

With that, Izuna storms out of the office sending secretaries and shinobi alike scrambling away from him as he moves through the halls puffing smoke, his chakra control slipping from him in his rage. 

* * *

Izuna is relatively calm by the time he reaches the corner where he found the girl's body. The rest of his anger is replaced by sadness when he sees blood still clinging between the cobblestones of the walkway despite the efforts made to wash it away. His resolve hardens further. That little girl will have her true justice, and whoever really killed her will get what's coming to them. 

He unrolls one of his summoning scrolls and smears his blood across it. His pair of blackfoot cat twins answer his call and he leans down to the little cats, "A little girl was murdered here last night. I need you two to sort out all of the scents around here. If you find one that is suspicious, track it. Will you do that for me?"

It's always best to ask nicely when dealing with cats, especially naturally wild cats.

"Of course, little mouse." One of the cats who are much smaller than him replies.

"Oh pipe down. We need more muscle if you want us to be tracking kitten killers, little mouse." His sister says after batting him over the head with a fuzzy paw.

Izuna sighs. He wanted them to be more covert than they will be with a caracal along with them, but it can't be helped. He doesn't blame them, not really, blackfoot cats are small, and while they are quick, intelligent and skilled hunters, they could easily be hurt or killed by being outweighed. He rolls out his other scroll and summons the caracal he did last night. 

"Investigating already?" The caracal says in a purr as she rubs her head against his cheek. 

"Yes," He says.

"We will find your kitten killer, little mouse," The caracal's rough voice says. All three cats get to work, the blackfoots sniffing and the caracal standing guard, while Izuna makes a beeline for his next stop.

He has to slip past guards here and there, but making it to Tobirama's cell is otherwise child's play. He makes sure to make noise as he approaches, and Tobirama, conscious now luckily having to deactivate seals to wake him up would have brought unwanted attention, looks up at him slowly, chains clinking and scratching as he does.

"Izuna?" He asks in a confused tone. Not a tone he would use if he was just confused that he had bothered to show, but one that tells Izuna he genuinely isn't sure who is approaching. 

"Yes, it's me," Izuna answers with a furrowed brow.

"Ah. I cannot see very well without my seals." Tobirama offers in explanation.

Izuna leans down to see the albino's face better in the low light, and is shocked to see those elegant little lines missing, "Huh. I always wondered why you had those tattoos. Not actually tattoos. Who knew?"

"Me, obviously." Tobirama says in a halfhearted attempt at sarcasm. He then sighs heavily and returns his gaze to the stone floor, "Why are you here?"

"Simple. I don't think you killed her. I need you to tell me anything that might help me figure out who did, so I can clear your name." Izuna says, leaning against the bars of the cell.

"Wh-..." Tobirama begins, "Why do you care? I thought you were done with me?"

"Did you kill her?"

"I would never hurt an innocent child."

"I know you wouldn't. And that's why I care. She deserves justice, and you receiving the penalty for the crime is not justice. Besides… I don't think I'm as done as I thought. I just… I only said that because I was hurt that you didn't return my feelings. Pretty stupid really, for me to just assume that you did and never actually ask you," Izuna mumbles.

"Just let it go, and release these seals," Tobirama says.

Izuna is tempted to ask what he should let go, Tobirama should know that he can't just let go of love by now, but he sticks to his resolve to stay on the productive way forward, "What will you do if I do release the seals?"

"I'll run. I will prove my innocence myself." Tobirama states, "Whoever did this is obviously after me, for whatever reason. If you get in the way and try and meddle, they may try and take you out of the picture too."

"Where's your farthest anchor?" Izuna asks, twirling the end of his ponytail around his forefinger.

"... The entrance of the village." 

Izuna flips the bound hair over his shoulder and spins around, "You won't make it. Your brother will catch you before you can get far enough away."

Tobirama flinches and curls up as best as his restraints will allow, "He really thinks I did it."

"He's delusional. I am going to prove him and everyone else wrong." Izuna says squatting down to Tobirama's level, "I came for information, but my cats and I will get to the bottom of this with or without you."

Tobirama looks up at him, poignantly miserable, "Let it go. The culprit is likely unpredictable and dangerous, and we have no idea what their goal is."

"So you want them to go free?" 

Silence reigns for several seconds.

"No. But-"

"There is no but. This is not right, and if you know anything about me you know I can't let it go. I can see you won't help me, and that's fine. I'm giving you my word that I will clear your name anyway," Izuna says. With that he stands up and turns to leave.

"Izuna, please. I'm sure that I can convince Hashirama on my own-" 

"Did he even speak to you? Has he come here to hear you plead your case?" 

The metallic scraping of chains as Tobirama shifts is his reply, and it's all he needs.

"If he does dain to show up, you can try to talk sense into him, but I already tried and he doesn't seem terribly receptive to it." He pauses and clenches his fists, "I get that I'm not your first choice, but with that hellcat kunoichi you hang around with gone on a mission that's set to last far past your execution date, your brother having his head firmly inserted in his own ass, and everyone else content to label you a murderer, I'm all you've got."

"It's not like that." Tobirama insists, "I wouldn't want Touka taking this chance either, and I was already reasonably certain Hashirama was too busy trying to hold the village together to fight this battle. It's dangerous Izuna, you don't have any intel on this culprit, you could walk into a den full if you aren't careful. You could be killed trying to do this alone."

"Eh, I'm a little bit hard to kill. Besides," Izuna smiles to himself and allows a few tears to drop, "I'm an unlovable basket case that's going to die alone anyway, right? May as well go down fighting for someone I love if that's the case."

"Izu-!" Is all Tobirama can get out before Izuna flickers into the ducts he snuck in through.

* * *

Izuna flees to the forest to calm and steel his mind. His cats should be coming with their findings any moment now. From there, he should be able to follow their directions to wherever the snake is coiled. Whatever happens then is fate, Tobirama was right, he will have no idea what he's going into. 

The wait feels like it takes a hundred years, but it's only an hour before his blackfoots land on his shoulders and his caracal saunters onto a tree branch in front of him.

"Did you find the scent?"

"Of course we did," the male blackfoot says.

"It was most easy to pick out near a small alcove in a beam above the blood smell," His sister adds.

That must have been where the kunai was.

"We do not believe it is human, little mouse." The caracal states languidly, "It has a most disturbing presence indeed. It is unwise for you to proceed alone."

"I have to. I'm the only one trying to get justice," Izuna snaps, "Where did the trail lead?"

"Underground. But it seems to disappear for large intervals without reason," The female blackfoot replies.

"Disappear?" 

"Yes. As if the creature exists and then doesn't," The male says. 

"But it leads to the Uchiha district. A hidden temple underground," The caracal supplies, "And that is where the presence is most foreboding."

Izuna closes his eyes and nods once, "Alright. Thank you all. Dismissed." 

The cats vanish in a cloud of smoke. 

Izuna stops briefly in his house to prepare for a fight. An underground creature being the culprit sounds far fetched, but his cats have never failed a recon mission before. He has no choice but to capture it, because no one would believe that though. 

He pulls on one of the lighter mail shirts that became standard issue for shinobi in the village now that they were easily acquirable. Over that, he puts on his standard mission gear. He is finishing up tightening the fabric around his waist that holds his favorite sword in place when Hikaku's voice startles him from the doorway.

"You lied." 

He spins around to face his cousin.

"You said you would come to me if you were going to do something stupid," Hikaku specifies, "and you lied."

"You will understand as soon as I am done. Tobirama is innocent and I can prove it," Izuna says.

"I believe you little cousin. But whatever you're doing, wherever you're going, you are an idiot to think you have to go alone," Hikaku states. 

"You have a family. I can't ask you to do this, I have no idea what I am facing," Izuna sighs.

"Which is another reason I'm coming. You are my family too."

Izuna realizes then that Hikaku is also dressed for battle and smiles to himself. They stare at each other for a few beats before Izuna relents.

"There's nothing I can say to change your mind is there?"

"Nope," Hikaku says with a smile. "You know the rules. No Uchiha goes on a mission alone. There has to be two of us, at least. Madara made that rule."

"He did. Alright, a party of two then. We are going to the shrine," Izuna says finishing up his cinches.

"Why there?" Hikaku asks.

"My cats tracked the killer there," Izuna answers as he moves to lead the way and Hikaku falls into step behind him. 

"But only Uchiha can get in there," His cousin says quietly.

Izuna nods, "Only Uchiha and monsters as it seems. The blackfoots say it's not a human scent. Just tread carefully, I wasn't kidding when I said I have no idea what it is."

Hikaku falls silent, probably shifting gears into his battle mindset. Izuna follows the example.

* * *

Shadows seem to stretch out as if to grab them as they enter the heavy atmosphere of the underground shrine. Beyond the prickling feeling that gives Izuna goosebumps, there is nothing amiss with the place.

"What exactly are we supposed to find here?" Hikaku asks.

"Not sure. It must be hiding," Izuna mumbles trying to calm his nerves as he approaches the tablet in the back of the room. 

_"If there is one thing about you Uchiha that remains constant over the years, it is predictability."_ a voice says seemingly from everywhere at once.

Izuna and Hikaku spring towards each other and press their backs together, weapons drawn.

 _"For instance,"_ the voice carries on, _"Loyalty to a fault. Very few of you are smart enough to recognize when you should look out for yourself instead of someone else."_

"Show yourself!" Izuna demands.

_"It was a pity really, when Uchiha Madara perished. Even more of a pain is your clan's ritual of burning the dead."_

Izuna grits his teeth. Don't let it goad you, stay calm, he drills to himself.

_"I had the stage set so perfectly for him too. Altered this tablet, sewed seeds of mistrust and hatred as far as I could to keep the clan wars going. All work that was for not when the wrong brother was cut down."_

Hikaku growls, "Shut up and come fight!"

_"But where there is a will, there is a way. I don't have to wait for the next pair of transmigrants. Uchiha Madara would have been easier to break, true, but all of you humans can be broken, and I can break Senju Hashirama eventually."_

Izuna has no clue what it is talking about, but it's enough of a confession for him, "So you murder children?!"

_"What better way to break a dreamer than to show him his dream will never be? And of course, Senju Tobirama's removal will be a contributing factor as well. Imagine having to kill your little brother because he went rabid on a little girl? Like I said, all humans are breakable."_

Izuna frantically scans the area with his Mangekyo trying to find where the creature is.

_"There is only one thing I will need after I break Senju Hashirama."_

A shadow drops down on them from above and sends Hikaku flying across the room and into a stone wall. Izuna narrowly ducks a hit himself. Capture is imperative, there has to be something left for them to interrogate to clear Tobirama's name. Izuna bounces off the wall and charges the shadow with that in mind, but it melts into the floor, causing him to collide with Hikaku who had charged from the other side. They tumble, and his cousin takes a nasty blow to the head.

"Hikaku?!" He yelps with alarm as he gives his now unconscious cousin a firm shake. He is relieved when Hikaku moans softly and he lays the man down gently. He is just knocked out, not dead, thank whatever gods are watching over them.

The distraction, however, proves to be a fatal error. He feels a hand wrap around his neck like a vice and chokes at the sudden lack of air.

 _"Sentimentality is weakness. You were more than powerful enough to kill me, but you didn't because you would have no proof then of Senju Tobirama's innocence. You could have worn me down for capture eventually, but you got distracted by concern. Typical Uchiha, ruled by emotion."_ the shadow mocks as it rises from the floor picking Izuna up off the ground by his neck as it goes, _"Your brother's eyes are the last piece I need. When Senju Hashirama finally loses the last bit of his light, he will take them and enact my mother's will. I will take them for now, for safekeeping. You are not needed."_

Izuna struggles and thrashes in the creature's grip and scratches at the arm holding his throat trying to free himself to no avail. It only earns him a tightened grip and he starts weakening from the lack of air. He has no choice. This will probably kill him, but it will only injure the shadow and Hikaku, and hopefully it will draw attention to them before the damn monster can get away. He starts gathering his chakra in his belly.

There is a reason fire style users almost always release their chakra from the point in their mouth and use their lungs to power the jutsu. It's not that fire is not usable from other chakra points or from existing sources as all the other elements are, it is because fire is incredibly difficult to mold and control. It burns inside, even before it is released, so using other chakra points to release it is incredibly dangerous, especially for someone naturally fire natured as Izuna is. It was the first lesson he was taught as a child learning fire style, to never use fire from chakra points near his organs unless it was an emergency. 

He releases his infused chakra all at once, from every chakra point facing the creature that he has. They are blown away from each other and into walls on the opposite ends of the shrine. Izuna feels several of his ribs crunching and snapping on impact and crumples to the ground. An explosion like that was bound to draw attention at least. 

Izuna painstakingly looks up to see the creature slumped unconscious against the opposite wall and Hikaku stirring, surprisingly uninjured besides his head wound despite his proximity to the blast of fire Izuna had caused. Good, that means he succeeded. That monster won't hurt anyone else, and Tobirama will be absolved of guilt. He curls up a bit wheezing out smoke. His breaths are still unsatisfying even though his windpipe is no longer being crushed. He has probably charred his lungs, amongst other things judging by the white hot pulsing pain in his entire body every time his heart beats. 

Losing consciousness is a blessed release from the pain of his internal burns, despite the knowledge that he is probably dying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think! Love y'all! <3


	4. Part Three: Umbra

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge thank you to @AwfulLoneliness for making this much smoother and easier to understand!! Would have been a mess without you!
> 
> Also IMPORTANT announcement! The rating for this fic is going up to explicit for a smutty scene in the next chapter! I will mark it clearly for those of you who dont want to read it, no worries, but just wanted to warn y'all!
> 
> Enjoy! >:)

Izuna's mind is muddled when he first wakes up. His bearings are shifted, he can't quite remember  how he got here, where he came from or even where  _ here _ was. He pushes his heavy body off the ground and stands so he can see, but it doesn't help him understand anything. It's just… a huge field of glowing waist-high grass, surrounded by trees. He feels as though he has seen it before, but can't place it.

"You aren't supposed to be here yet, you little weasel," a voice says from behind him.

Izuna's breathing stalls as he spins around,  catching a glimpse of a long dark mass of hair he could recognize anywhere.

"Madara," he chokes , stumbling forward to hug his beloved Aniki, but the man dodges him  easily .

"Nope. I already told you, it's not time," Madara sighs.

"I…  time for what? Did I not die ?" Izuna asks.

Madara shakes his head. "You gave it your best shot, but no, I would be kicking your ass if you had. I did try to warn you about that thing, but it is unreasonably difficult  for me  to interact with the living world  now ."

"All those bad feelings…" Izuna muses to himself.

"It was the best I could do," Madara says a bit sheepishly. 

"What now?" 

"Now you fight. You pull through. You live."

Izuna stares at Madara for a long time and yearns to  hug him again more than anything in the world, "And if I don't want to?"

Madara heaves a sigh, "If you can't think of a single thing in the living world you will regret leaving behind, then…"

He holds out an ungloved hand and Izuna reaches to take it but… Hikaku and Kagami flash through his mind, memories of Kagami's laughter and Hikaku's gentle advice. Then Naori and her grandmother who always flag him down for help weeding their flower garden, and the little Senju boy he has been teaching Katana formations to.  Finally an image of Tobirama, blushing and pouting, comes to his mind, and melts his heart. He looks into his brother's eyes and sees a test there. For all that he desperately misses Madara, he can't let go of all the beautiful bonds that he still has, and Madara knows it. He can't imagine inflicting the pain of  grieving his death on the people who will miss him if he  can avoid it . He freezes centimeters away from his brother's hand. 

He has a choice that Madara did not get. He thinks of those dark, painful months when he grieved so heavily he thought he wouldn't make it, and of the days he still has when it weighs on his mind that Madara is absent along with the rest of his brothers heavily enough that he doesn't want to face the world without them. He retracts his hand back against his chest.

"I miss you, Aniki, but… I want to live." Izuna says softly.

"That's it then," Madara says with a smile as he drops his hand back to his side, careful to avoid brushing Izuna by accident.

"I guess so," Izuna says, feeling quite suddenly sleepy. Something urgent comes to mind and he fights to stay awake. "What is this place?"

Madara tilts his head a bit. "It is  an in between of sorts."

Izuna feels a rush of dizziness  and powers through it . "In between… you aren't stuck here, right?"

"No, I'm not. I'm here to make sure you remember everything you have to live  for. It's time for you to go back now, little brother."

"Wait, I…" Izuna tries to say, but his tongue  is heavy, too heavy  .

"It's ok.  I'll see you when it's really your time ." 

Izuna slumps  down  into the grass.

* * *

Waking up makes Izuna regret not dying. His whole body is alight with burning pain,  but it is not a surprise. He almost blew himself up from the inside out if his  memory serves him right, and it hurts like hell . He groans and cracks his eyes open, squinting against the harsh light until he can discern where he is. Flowing green fields have been replaced by the stagnant white of a hospital room. 

Breathing is the worst agony in the world, he realizes the next second. His lungs must have taken the brunt of the damage. And he has broken ribs  on top of that, three or maybe four.  Great.

He keeps his breaths shallow and turns his head to see what the weight on his arm is. He finds Tobirama curled there, with his fingers locked around Izuna's. The Senju is slumbering half draped on the bed and half perched in a chair in what looks to be a very uncomfortable position, yet his sharp features are softened by sleep. Izuna feels a familiar rush of affection despite all the arguments they have had between them lately, and wishes the feeling to be mutual. 

Izuna squeezes  his hand lightly,  and the movement wakes Tobirama. He bolts upright and jostles Izuna's wounds, making the Uchiha flinch.

"Shit. I'm sorry," The albino says, leaning in to place a glowing green hand on Izuna's chest. The pain dulls to a manageable level seconds later.

Izuna smiles when he realizes Tobirama is still gripping his other hand,  his subconscious way to try and offer comfort. Izuna's entire body feels like lead, yet he lifts Tobirama's hand to his cheek and snuggles against it. May as well take full advantage of the affection while it's still available. 

Tobirama dips his head a bit, a dark shadow coming over his eyes. "You almost killed yourself, you know that?"

The younger man recognizes the look on the albino's face as guilt, but he is confused as to why he would feel guilty if Izuna was the one who almost killed himself. He tries to think, but his mind is muddled, as if his head is full of cotton instead of brains.  Then, he registers that something is going wrong, his chest is on  _ fire. _

"-zuna! Hey!" Tobirama is inches away from his face, but he doesn't remember when it happened . He has to actively force himself to concentrate on deciphering what Tobirama is saying. "Hikaku! He's having another respiratory failure. Go get Hashirama, _now_!"

Hikaku is here? Was he here the whole time? How could Izuna have missed him? Izuna would look for his cousin, but his vision is developing large obstructive black spots in it for some reason. What was it Tobirama said about respiratory failure?

"I don't know how long it'll take for him to get here! Izuna, you have to breathe!" Tobirama cries desperately,  using his medical chakra on Izuna’s chest .

Izuna only now realizes through  the  fog of confusion that he isn't breathing, but knowing doesn't help him unknot the muscles  that pull his lungs open so he can start breathing. A few spasms pass through his chest, but his diaphragm refuses to work. How long can someone go without oxygen and not become a vegetable? Six minutes or seven? Surely Izuna would have passed out if he was close to it, so why is the Senju so worried?

"Damn you!" Tobirama says with genuine tears  dropping down his cheeks and onto Izuna. "Stop running away from me before I get the chance to talk to you! Breathe!"

Air is still refusing to come into his lungs, and Tobirama presses his forehead to Izuna's softly, shaking with what can only be fear and grief. Izuna wishes he could comfort the older man and tell him that Madara wouldn't have sent him back from that nice, warm, pain-free field just for him to die minutes later anyway, but he can't get even a squeak out. 

He is about to black out from lack of oxygen when Tobirama's hands shift their position just a bit and relax the right group of muscles. Izuna sucks in an incredibly painful breath and launches into a coughing fit.

Red eyes fly open and Tobirama straightens his back pumping a bit more chakra into that area of Izuna's diaphragm. "Thank the gods… calm down, it's going to be okay."

Izuna schools his breaths back to short shallow gasps to keep himself from choking and causing more pain.

Tobirama makes a noise somewhere between hysteria and relief. "That's it. I know it hurts, I'm sorry. Just keep breathing."

Izuna's consciousness is spotty after that, and he only catches bits and pieces of conversations.

"I think it was the way he was trying to breathe shallowly through pain…. Probably best to keep him under…." a not-Tobirama voice says.

The last thing he remembers before he drops off into a deep dreamless sleep is a warm hand wrapping around his. 

* * *

The next time Izuna wakes up, it is very cold. A shiver passes through his body, but luckily the pain from before has lessened to a mere annoyance of an ache and he can breathe almost normally. He must have been asleep for a long while. 

He shifts in bed and then drags his eyes open with a groan.

"Finally. It's been a day since Anija took that seal off of you," Tobirama says from beside him. He has a glass of water ready, and helps Izuna sit up and sip from it.

"How long was I out?" Izuna asks, flinching internally at how rough his voice is from lack of use and poor air capacity.

Tobirama makes him finish the water before he gives an answer. "A week at first, and another five and a half after that."

"That long?" Izuna frowns, imagining all the work  that has piled up in over a month of being kept in a coma. (He hopes it wasn't a natural coma anyway, and he vaguely remembers now that he is more alert hearing a comment about 'keeping him under')

"Why so long?"

He gets an incredibly exasperated stare in response. "You had five broken ribs, one of your lungs was pierced and both were scorched to the point they were operating at fifty percent capacity, your diaphragm was burned almost past the point of being salvageable, part of your liver had to be removed because it was cooked, you lost a kidney for the same reason, most of your other organs had burned areas that were barely in the threshold of being treatable with medical ninjutsu, and you lost a pint of blood from internal hemorrhaging before Hikaku was aware enough to start treatment on you,”  Tobirama explains dryly as he grabs a clipboard with medical records attached to it and tosses it on Izuna's lap, “You had to be given a blood transfusion,  _ which is still an experimental procedure. _ Even with that coming out successful by pure luck, you  _ still _ had a total of two cardiac and four respiratory arrests. The first respiratory arrest lasted six whole minutes and had you under the hands of your concussed cousin, in a random shrine, while he forcibly infused oxygen into your blood to keep you alive and keep your brain from being damaged by lack of oxygen until Anija got there to heal you.  Anija, who, I would like to remind you, has the biggest chakra reserve I have ever seen and enough life energy to heal wounds that most medical shinobi would write off as lost causes, struggled to save you, and continued to struggle to keep you alive for a whole  _ week _ . A  _ week  _ I spent with your devastated cousin, at your beside, knowing you could die at any second and your death would be on my shoulders. A week following which, you started to stabilize, and then proceeded to have  _ another  _ organ failure the minute you regained consciousness because your weak lungs and muscles could not withstand the stress of you trying to avoid pain by breathing shallowly. And that was bad enough a failure that it forced Anija to use seals to keep you asleep long enough for your lungs and diaphragm to heal enough that they wouldn't tire and fail just from you consciously controlling your breathing. That took awhile, because medical ninjutsu is only so effective, and you literally set a bomb off  _ inside your body.  _ It is nothing short of a miracle you're alive at all right now, yet you are still for some reason confused as to why you were kept in a coma so long."

Izuna is effectively silenced by that reprimanding explanation. He glares at the medical terms on the clipboard before tossing it aside. He shouldn't be surprised at how extensive the damage was considering, but… damn. He has seen men die from much less. The Hokage is an unloyal asshat, but he's a ridiculously good healer.

"Was that creature captured?" Izuna asks eventually.

Tobirama scowls darkly. "Not for long. We did not have enough information to properly seal it and it got away once it healed enough, but I memorized its chakra signature. Now it likely knows better than to try to come back to the Leaf.  But the real question is, do you really care more about that thing being in custody than you do about your own life?"

Izuna curses under his breath and tries to shift to a more comfortable position. "I thought it was a fair trade to give my life to save the others that thing would have hurt or killed for its ‘mother's will' or whatever. But I guess I messed that up too."

Tobirama's chakra spikes a bit, and he has to tamp it back down before he grinds out, "So you were aware that move was very likely to kill you, aware enough that you weighed your life against others, and you did it anyway,  without knowing what that damned creature was or if your last ditch effort would stop it!  _ What is wrong with you?!  _ You could have died for absolutely nothing! You would have died for nothing, if you had died, because the creature escaped even after you injured it!"

Izuna smiles a bit awkwardly, "If I had died, I would have died for you. Fire is effective on pretty much anything at that volume. Even if my last attack only brought that thing down for one hour, that would have been enough time  to show it existed, and give credit to whatever Hikaku  would have said. It was a reasonable gamble. I would have done it even if I  _ had _ known enough about it to know it couldn't be contained, because taking that risk was all I could think of to save you from being executed for something you didn't do."

"You--!" The albino stops and takes a deep breath while rubbing his temples, before continuing. "You can't do things like this and then say things like that. I… did you even think about how I would feel, knowing you killed yourself just to clear my name? Knowing that… that you latched onto something I said when I was angry and died believing it?"

"I didn't do it because of that if that's what-"

"It does not  _ matter _ why. You could have died trying to save me, and the last thing you said to me was a paraphrased version of something horrible I said to you that you apparently took to heart," Tobirama snaps, before wilting a little and looking away. "I'm sorry, by the way. For telling you that you were incapable of meaningful relationships and that you were going to die alone. I learned very early on that anything you say to someone could be the last thing you say to them, and I should have known better than to choose my words so thoughtlessly."

"I'm sorry too. It's not like I didn't say some shitty things to you as well. And I'm sorry for not hearing you out."

"Well, you can't move very fast right now, so I guess you can't run. Given your track record, this would be the best time to tell you what's on my mind, since we are alone for the rest of the night," Tobirama says softly as he resettles himself in the chair beside Izuna’s bed.

"Night?" Izuna asks as he looks out the window. Sure enough, it's getting dark outside. They will have to light some candles soon.

"Early night, but yes. Anija won't be here until tomorrow morning and Hikaku won't visit until around noon, so we have plenty of time to talk things out." 

"Have you been here the whole time?" Izuna asks, mystified.

"You had been in the hospital for two days before they released me, but other than that and work I couldn't do here, yes. I… Remember a time when you did the same for me, if for a shorter time. Besides, leaving you made me feel uncomfortable, like you could die if I wasn't here. Everyone realized soon enough that they weren't going to be able to get me to leave, so they stopped trying."

Izuna feels his cheeks warm at that, "I didn't think you would care that much."

Tobirama glares at him. "Because you never let me explain my feelings before running away. We have been over this."

"I'm listening now," Izuna offers.

The Senju sighs. "We only knew how to be enemies at first. Eventually, we learned how to be rivals instead, then we learned how to be real friends and help each other. When you told me you wanted me, I thought all you meant was sex. Admittedly, we probably both could have communicated a little better in that situation. But, if being… with me more than just physically is something you still want after all this, then we can learn how to do that. If anyone can, it's us."

Izuna has to hold back giggles when he sees the bright red hue over Tobirama's cheeks. 

"You never said what you want," Izuna says in a bemused tone, and Tobirama flashes him a glare. "I think it is best if I hear it out loud this time, so we can avoid more confusion."

"Fine," Tobirama says with false annoyance as his blush spreads all the way to his ears. "I want to try. I love you, Izuna."

Izuna pulls himself closer to the Senju, using his shoulder as a brace and ignoring the twinges of pain in his still battered body, to plant a soft kiss on his jaw before cuddling into the crook of his neck. 

"I love you too." 

Tobirama sighs and gently pushes Izuna back onto the bed, but the Uchiha is not letting him off so easily though. He  pulls Tobirama down by the collar, into a less than chaste kiss and curls his fingers in silver locks,  tugging until Tobirama gives in and crawls over him, powerful thighs over his hips and arms locked on either side of his head.

It's the albino who breaks the kiss, leaving Izuna panting for breath for a much better reason than pain and bad lung capacity.

"How healed am I exactly?" Izuna asks, feeling heat coiling in his belly.

"Not enough for this," Tobirama growls at him.

"Aw, why not?" Izuna groans.

Tobirama raises an unimpressed eyebrow. "Do I have to remind you that you nearly died?"

Izuna gives him his best puppy eyed look.

"No. Not until you're out of the hospital. I'm not causing you any more injuries, and I'm not going to let you do it to yourself either." 

Izuna sighs. "Alright, fine. Then at least snuggle with me? It's cold in here."

"It's cold in here to help those of us with only eighty percent lung capacity breathe. You still have rehabilitation ahead of you," Tobirama grumbles. Still, he gently settles them both in the little hospital bed flush against each other. 

Izuna tucks his head under Tobirama's chin, tangles their legs together, and knows he is right where he belongs. 


	5. Part Four: Penumbra

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HaHA!!! All done here folks!!! 
> 
> As usual, give thanks to @KingSunWukong for beta'ing and cleaning up my messes lol!
> 
> This is the last chapter of this story, but I have already begun writing the next arc for this AU, and I'm super excited for it!! I hope you will all continue on this journey with me dear readers!!!

Hashirama heaves a sigh as he flips through Izuna's medical chart. The Hokage looks up with a slight frown at Izuna who just continues giving him his best 'go to hell' smile. Anyone that is capable of giving up on family for any reason is as good as dead to Izuna, regardless of if they have saved his life or not. 

"You got off lucky all things considered. Your lungs are scarred, but the decrease in capacity is marginal, and you shouldn't even notice it most of the time. The only other permanent damage is the kidney I had to remove. You're at a higher risk for kidney failure, and you'll have to watch what you eat. No heavy drinking either. Other than that, you will make a full recovery." Hashirama says eventually as he drops the records onto his examination table with a resolute 'clack.'

"Great! Does that mean I can go home now?" Izuna chirps.

The brunette gives him an odd look before replying, "One of your surgical wounds is on your back. You won't be able to properly care for it yourself, it would be best that you stay here in the hospital until that one at least closes all the way to avoid infection."

"Come on! I have been awake for two weeks now! I don't have any more stitches!" Izuna practically whines, "And last time you said I could leave when my stitches were all out!" 

Being cooped up in this stupid hospital room is making him insane. He has places to be and heads to crack, he can't stand being idle any longer.

"I know but--" Hashirama begins.

"Anija, enough." Tobirama interrupts from his place beside Izuna. He has been silent the whole time, and expressionless as well. The same emotional barriers he puts up with most everyone he is now putting up against his brother. Izuna finds that a bit sad, but he doesn't blame Tobirama at all. If anything, it makes him even more pissed at his _esteemed_ Hokage.

"He is more than healed enough to be released, and you have been treating patients long enough to know that. Whatever you are trying to accomplish, you won't accomplish it by trying to keep him here." The albino continues in deadpan.

Hashirama takes a sudden interest in the floor, "I was legitimately worried about infection, I'm not trying to accomplish anything."

Izuna scowls deeply, and barely manages to keep his Sharingan under control. From what Tobirama has told him, the elder Senju brother has not even tried to talk to him about anything other than Izuna's condition or village politics since he was released. He hasn't acknowledged what he did, nor has he tried to apologize for wrongly accusing Tobirama or explained why he did what he did. What Tobirama just said was an obvious attempt to give him another chance to do so, and the brunette _idiot_ is ignoring that and letting Tobirama believe he truly doesn't care. 

The albino's stare gets colder if possible, and if Izuna didn't know better he would say Tobirama was angry. He does know better though, and he knows the man is just sad and trying to keep safe his hurt heart with cold walls. 

"If infection is all you are concerned with," Tobirama grinds out, "then do not be concerned. I will be with him, and I can help him with the incision on his back."

Hashirama just smiles feebly, "Right, you two are together now. I forgot."

Izuna wants to scream. How can one man be so fucking stupid?! Tobirama is not like Izuna, he is not as full of spite or as bent on justice. All this dumbass has to do is offer even a slight explanation that tells Tobirama in any fractional way that he didn't believe him to be a child murderer, or at the very least something to show that he cares about the albino. For fuck's sake, even 'sorry brother, I love you but I love this village more than you and that's why I was going to let you be put down like a rabid animal' would work. 

Izuna looks to the heavens for patience, _Aniki, whatever good you saw in him please point it out to me, I can't find it._

"Well we are. Together that is, and we will be living together. I'm more than capable of keeping him from dying from infection, so sign his damn release forms." Tobirama demands.

Hashirama looks pained, but he leans forward and signs the forms anyway before handing them to Izuna. "Make sure those incisions stay clean and wrapped. No especially strenuous activities until they are totally closed."

"Sure," Izuna snips as he takes the forms. 

Tobirama waits a few more seconds, but it soon becomes obvious the Hokage isn't going to say anything and he gets even more stone-faced, all traces of emotion disappearing from his posture. Izuna wants nothing more than to grab Hashirama by his shoulders and just shake him until he either spontaneously grows some common sense or dies, whichever comes first.

"I am sure you are ready to get out of here. Let's go, Izuna." Tobirama says coldly. 

Izuna is more than ready to leave, but he'd stay another month in the hospital if Hashirama would just give his brother a simple condolence. Tobirama moves to leave and Izuna spares one last glare at the Hokage before hopping up to follow his partner.

"Tobirama," Hashirama calls from behind them.

Both Izuna and the man in question turn to him, but he falls silent and looks away from them the moment they do. Izuna's frustration skyrockets.

"If you would like to speak to him alone, I can leave." Izuna offers out of exasperation. Tobirama shoots him an irritated look before returning his analytic gaze to his brother.

"No, nothing like that. I just wanted to remind you that my fiance is arriving today. Both of you will be expected there since Izuna is feeling up to it." Hashirama says. 

The only thing that keeps Izuna from skinning him alive is Tobirama's presence.

"Right." Tobirama grunts. 

He leaves without another word and Izuna trots to keep up with his long strides. There's a slight shift of chakra, an infinitesimal pull that Izuna has become attuned to searching for, and he lunges to catch Tobirama's arm before he flashes away with the Hiraishin. 

They appear in Tobirama's house where the albino snarls aloud and yanks out of Izuna's grip. He walks away only three paces before he rears back and puts his fist through a wooden support beam with a pulse of chakra, smashing it to pieces and soaking the area around it with water. The Senju stands there for a few moments taking heaving breaths as if he was the one with scarred lungs, before backing up against a wall and collapsing, wrapping his hands around his knees, and placing his head on them. 

Izuna is frozen with shock and indecision for a few moments. He clenches his teeth trying to imagine Madara doing something like this to him. He can't begin to imagine a scenario where his Aniki would put anything before him to the point he would actually question whether he was loved. It's unfathomable that Hashirama could allow his little brother to think he didn't love him, much less allow him to bottle up his feelings until he explodes like he just did. 

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Izuna slowly moves forward. He gently places a hand on Tobirama's shoulder. When the touch is not shrugged away by the tremoring Senju, Izuna carefully leans down and hugs Tobirama as best he can around the man's tight fetal position making sure to keep his movements deliberate and predictable.

"I always knew that his dream was more important to him than I was. I was okay with that. It would be selfish for me to ask him to put me before so many others that depend on him anyway." Tobirama says softly.

They don't depend on him, Izuna wants to scream, not the way you do, he should know how to see when you need him more than the village does. But he holds his tongue as he knows that imposing his own values on this situation, values which the Senju brothers obviously weren't raised with, wouldn't help anything.

Tobirama starts shaking harder, and when Izuna realizes it's from crying he has to restrain himself from going to Hashirama and tearing him limb from limb for this.

"I knew I wasn't first in his heart. But… I thought at the very least… he loved me enough to fight for me. I thought he would be able to have a bit of faith in me, even when no one else does." The albino confides in a whisper.

What a curse, to have such love and loyalty for a man incapable of seeing beyond a perfect world that can't exist. 

_Oh Madara,_ Izuna thinks to himself, _now I have to be glad I lived instead of you as well. Loving_ **_him_ ** _would have been the final nail in your coffin. He would have ruined you, and not even been able to understand how or why._

"He is incapable of understanding why his inaction is hurting you so badly. He doesn't get that you need him to see you, and just you sometimes. That's not selfish, that's human, and your brother expecting you not to have those needs is negligent." Izuna mumbles to Tobirama, "I know it's not the same, but I would personally claw my way to the ends of the earth fighting for you. I will have faith in you until my very last breath. That's a promise."

Tobirama gives a hysterical little laugh and then says something just too low for Izuna to hear.

"What?" Izuna asks as he pulls back leaving his hands gripping his partner's shoulders. 

The albino looks up, a smile on his face despite the pain and tears that accompany it, "You already kept that promise once. Don't do it again."

"Now I'm going to do it just to spite you." Izuna informs him, mischief creeping into his tone. 

"Only you would say something like that at a time like this." Tobirama drawls with another little laugh. 

"You got me. What can I say," Izuna sighs out as he wipes the tears off Tobirama's cheeks with his thumbs, "I'm an evil little rat."

The albino nods gravely, "My evil little rat."

"Yours for as long as you can put up with me. And that _is_ a challenge, just in case I wasn't clear."

"You should know better than to challenge me by now. Especially when the reward is so enticing." Tobirama says, mimicking Izuna's mischievous tone.

The Uchiha is comforted immensely by the fact that Tobirama has begun to recompose himself. He just needs someone to be open with, someone to understand him, someone he doesn't feel like he has to hide from, and Izuna is more than willing to provide that. It's only fair, since that is what Tobirama provides him.

Izuna is centimeters away from capturing those pale lips with his own when the man he loves so dearly ruins the mood.

"We have to be ready to welcome the Uzumaki by evening." He informs.

Izuna rolls his eyes as dramatically as possible. "Let your brother do it. It's one clan entering."

"It's not a clan for the village, it is the _Uzumaki_ clan from the Land of Whirlpools? They are forming a treaty with Konoha through marriage." Tobirama says in a dry tone.

"Someone agreed to marry that jerk?"

Tobirama scowls a bit, "He is not really trying to be cruel you know. But yes, Uzumaki Mito will be marrying Anija and moving here."

"Why do we have to go though?" Izuna whines.

"Because you are head of the Uchiha clan, and people haven't seen you in a long time. It would be best for you to show at a major public event as soon as possible so no one thinks you died and we are trying to cover it up. I'm expected by Anija's side as always. A unified front is important, Izuna."

Izuna pouts and puffs out his cheeks petulantly, "Alright whatever."

* * *

Mito is way too pretty for Hashirama, is what Izuna immediately decides upon seeing her. She has such serene grace, such effortless beauty, but she also looks dangerous from the sharp gleaming of intelligence held in her eyes. 

"I like her," Izuna whispers to Tobirama.

"You haven't had a single word with her." Tobirama fires back.

"Don't have to. I can tell." 

Neither Izuna nor Tobirama get the chance to speak with Mito the whole evening, but Izuna feels an inexplicable connection to her none-the-less. He stares at her for a long enough time that people start to whisper before he forcibly focuses his attention elsewhere. 

A good focal point is his partner who is tense as a board as he watches the brother who has been thoroughly ignoring him all evening. Izuna carefully moves to take the albino's hand so the other man can move away if he's not comfortable with the public display of affection. To his surprise, Tobirama's fingers interlace with his without resistance and give a firm squeeze. 

A smile creeps across Izuna's face and he kisses Tobirama's knuckles to further distract him from his brother's treatment. Moments later, he is being pulled away from the crowd and through mostly empty streets.

"I thought you said we had to be there?" Izuna says as he is rugged over walkways a bit faster than he can keep up with.

"We showed up. People saw us, more importantly, they saw you alive. That's good enough. I think what we were in the middle of back at my place was a little more important than standing around and being ignored." Tobirama says with a low tone that makes Izuna's stomach knot.

"What were we in the middle of?" Izuna asks out of genuine confusion. 

He doesn't remember anything being interrupted besides a kiss… oh. His stomach knots even more with excitement as Tobirama spins him around and pins him with his back against the wall. 

"I was going to give you what I promised I would give you when you got out of the hospital, if you wanted it." 

Okay, this is new. Tobirama usually blushes like crazy at any sort of talk like that. But upon closer examination, the albino does have a blush dusting his cheeks. That's adorable, he's actually trying to make _Izuna_ blush right now. He is going to have to do a lot better than that if that's what he's after. Still, the younger man is not going to complain if Tobirama wants to give this time. (Infuriatingly enough, the Senju is bigger than him in more ways than one.)

"Alright. Bring it on Senju." Izuna challenges playfully.

Tobirama smirks and pushes into Izuna's space, locking their lips together in a passionate kiss that makes Izuna's knees tremble. The albino bites down on his bottom lips hard enough to make Izuna yelp as he pulls away.

"Just so you know, I have _let_ you dominate me thus far, but I'm not going to do it anymore." Tobirama growls into Izuna's ear as he presses a knee against his groin, "You are going to regret that challenge."

Izuna can now feel his cheeks burning, but his excitement still hasn't waned. "Your place or mine? You could do it here I suppose, but this stone isn't exactly comfortable on my incisions."

O////O

The next second, Izuna is no longer being pinned against stone, he is being pinned against a bed instead. Not only does Tobirama have the advantage in height and weight, he also has better leverage in his position on all fours above the smaller Uchiha. Izuna could definitely escape if he wanted to, the Senju is allowing him enough space for that at all times, but he doubts that he could flip their positions. 

Tobirama leans down and starts biting and sucking possessive marks into Izuna's neck while the Uchiha yanks haphazardly at his simple black formal attire trying to get it off. Eventually his lover dains to help him and unceremoniously rips his clothes off before tossing them carelessly to the side. He then runs his hands over Izuna's now bare stomach eliciting shivers and returns to his work making as many lovebites as he can.

"I don't remember asking to be mauled!" Izuna says, but the intent behind it is ruined by how breathless he sounds.

Tobirama presses their lips together with bruising intensity before pulling away to respond, "You could have asked me to stop, and you don't really seem to mind." 

Izuna scowls and fists his hands in Tobirama's shirt, "Off. Now."

The Senju complies with a chuckle and strips his own clothes off. Izuna feels a familiar twinge of guilt when he sees the scar in the center of Tobirama's chest and he traces the edge of it with his fingertips.

"I've told you a hundred times, it's okay." Tobirama huffs.

"I could have killed you." 

"And you didn't unfortunately for you. That means I can do this." the Senju shifts his position to suck on one of Izuna's nipples.

"Ah, fuck!" The younger man curses out of surprise when Tobirama presses his tongue hard against the sensitive little nub and flicks it continuously with skill Izuna had no idea he possessed. 

He curses the shiver in his voice when he spits out an accusation, "You have been holding out on me you bastard!" 

Tobirama picks his head up and gives Izuna a confident smirk that makes even more of his blood rush downwards. This man is going to be the death of him. 

"You have no idea Uchiha. I'm going to make you scream. That's a promise." The albino states leaving no room for argument.

"Bold words for someone who hasn't even gotten a real moan yet." Izuna argues anyway, just because he can.

Tobirama responds to that by grinding their erections together suddenly, ripping a moan from Izuna's throat before he can think of stopping it.

"What was that you said Izuna?"

Izuna opens his mouth but the minute he does Tobirama gives his dick a firm stroke, coaxing out more moans that he has to bite down on his knuckles to contain. The albino's self satisfied smile says it all. _Bastard._

Tobirama briefly leans over Izuna and produces a bottle of lube from the nightstand and something rather important occurs to Izuna when he sees it.

"Uhm… I… have never bottomed before." Izuna says sheepishly.

The Senju places gentle kisses along Izuna's jaw, "I can still take you inside me from this position if you aren't comfortable with me being inside you."

"No!" Izuna squeaks immediately before clearing his throat and trying not to sound quite so desperate when he continues, "Ah, I mean… I want you to be inside me. I just… be gentle?"

"I would never hurt you." Tobirama says.

He trails butterfly kisses down Izuna's chest as he covers his fingers in a generous amount of lube. A slicked finger circles Izuna's entrance making him gasping and squirm a bit.

"Are you sure?" The albino asks gently. 

Izuna nods and Tobirama presses his finger inside slowly, as to keep him relaxed and let him get used to the feeling. It feels… weird. It doesn't hurt really though. The second finger burns a bit, but it's not until the third that Tobirama brushes his prostate and sends a jolt of pleasure through his nervous system. 

"There it is," the albino muses to himself as he begins stroking over that spot with every thrust of his fingers. 

The slow teasing strokes are driving Izuna crazy, and he's sure Tobirama knows it. He moves to grab his cock, desperate for more friction, but his lover grabs his hand before he can.

"Be patient." Tobirama reprimands lightly.

Izuna whines in response, "I'm ready, just fuck me!" 

Tobirama pulls his fingers out and moves to a better position grabbing one of Izuna's legs and holding it up while he presses the head of his cock against the younger man's hole. "If you need me to stop, just tell me."

"I need you to start- ah!" 

Izuna's demand is cut short when Tobirama slowly starts entering him. It burns a little, being filled to the brim like he is, but his lover is keeping his promise to be gentle. Once Tobirama is fully inside his stops and waits for Izuna to adjust, shaking a bit from what the Uchiha knows is the self control necessary to not just take his own pleasure. 

"Move," Izuna says once the slight burn fades.

Tobirama holds onto one of Izuna's thighs on one side, and his hip on the other and pulls all the way out only to slam back in all at once, rubbing against his prostate as he goes. He sets a rhythm after that, brutal enough to make Izuna's back arc of the bed.

Izuna wraps the leg Tobirama is not holding around the Senju's waist to help him guide the thrusts and once again bites his knuckles to keep in the more embarrassing noises that threaten to escape him. He's close, so close. He just needs… Izuna reaches to stroke his neglected cock which is leaking precum and barely stifles a yelp when Tobirama let's go of his hip and leg in favor of yanking both of his hands above his head and holding them there.

Most people would find the curled position Izuna is in under someone who outweighs them by such a margin uncomfortable, painful even, but Izuna is flexible enough that the position itself doesn't bother him. The fact that Tobirama is keeping him from being able to bring himself to release, and has stopped moving inside him as well however, that is entirely unacceptable.

"Tobi, please!" Izuna says, too desperate to be embarrassed by the fact that hes resorted to begging, "Please let me cum!"

"Just a second, I want to show you a new jutsu I perfected." Tobirama pants.

Izuna wants to cry, how did he fall for such an asshole? "Are you really talking about a fucking jutsu _now?!_ " 

"You owe me a scream," The albino says. It is then that Izuna realizes Tobirama is smirking, which almost never is a good thing, and that his pinned hands are being used to make signs. 

Without warning, the Senju starts pistoning his hips again. He fucks Izuna to the edge and then activates whatever technique he had started before, which was apparently meant to stimulate _every single nerve in Izuna's body_. The Uchiha screams as his orgasm washes over him, the most intense one he has ever experienced in his life. His clenching muscles bring his lover over the edge too, and Tobirama fucks them both through it until they collapse into the sheets, totally spent. 

It takes Izuna a few moments to regain the mental capacity to speak, but even when he does, he just says, "Holy shit."

"Good?" Tobirama pants as he slides his now limp member out of the Uchiha.

"Amazing. Sex jutsu. Should've known you'd pull something like that eventually." Izuna says as he lays on Tobirama's now sweaty shoulder, forcing the Senju to stay put so they can cuddle.

"We need to clean up." Tobirama sighs.

Izuna is already almost asleep when he says it, so all he offers in response is a tired, "Mmhmmm."

Thankfully, Tobirama doesn't try to argue, because there is no way Izuna is getting up anyway.

O////O

Sunlight pouring through the window pulls Izuna from his sleep slowly and comfortably. Warmth from the sunbeams and the man beside him keep him in a light doze longer than he probably should stay with how much work he has to catch up on, but he's so happy to wake up beside Tobirama again outside that shitty hospital room that he indulges in a few extra hours.

He would actually be content to let Tobirama sleep until noon if he wants to, but they are not allowed such a peaceful morning. 

Out of nowhere, a naginata embeds itself in the pillow beside Izuna's head, shearing off a bit of his hair as it goes. He snaps fully awake and alert and finds himself face to face with the sharp catlike features of a woman he knows only from the battlefield. Her armor is dusty, and her usual immaculate topknot is somewhat disheveled, likely from the length of time she has been away on a mission (Izuna only knows that is why she was gone because young Naori had been sent on the mission with her, and he keeps a hawk's eye on the youngest of the shinobi and kunoichi under his care) but it is undoubtedly the woman who ended up battling Hikaku nine times out of ten during the clan wars. Her name escapes him as she angles the embedded weapon towards his throat.

"You have ten seconds to explain why you think you can violate my baby cousin," She snarls at him, "and if I don't like what you have to say, you lose _both_ of your heads Uchiha."

Cousin? That explains why she's here at least. He becomes pointedly aware of the mess he and Tobirama fell asleep in and tries to swallow the lump in his throat.

"I mean if anyone was violated last night it was m-" he squeaks out but the blade of her weapon digging into his Adam's apple cuts him off.

"Wrong answer. If you think I'm going to stand by and let you _USE_ my cousin like this you are sorely mistaken! I don't give a single fuck what clan you are head of!" She spits leaning down to stare boldly into his eyes, most definitely aware of, but also unafraid of the danger that brings.

Izuna thought he knew what fear was until he met this woman more than in passing. Now he knows she is fear incarnate, a goddess in her own right.

"One last chance Uchiha. Why are you in bed with my cousin reeking of sex?!"

"I love him of course, I wouldn't have stayed the night if it was just fucking!" Izuna practically squeals, his voice several decibels higher than normal. 

He tries to nudge Tobirama to get the man to help him out, but he's still dead asleep. Shit, she's probably a familiar and safe chakra to him if she's so angry over finding him in bed with someone random! He's not going to wake up quick enough to bail Izuna out of this. The earthquake inside a woman's body regards him coldly for a few seconds and then nods once.

 _Madara, you jerk! Why did you put me through that grueling recovery if I was going to die like this anyway?!_ Izuna thinks to himself.

The woman then removes her naginata from his pillow and says, "Acceptable. I'm going to my home to get cleaned up, you get him up and get decent before I get back." 

She then turns and starts to stalk out of the room, weapon disappearing into a seal. Izuna blinks rapidly out of confusion.

"Wait, what?" He says under his breath.

"You heard me," she deadpans as she disappears down the hall. 

Izuna has never been so confused in his life, but he doesn't want her to come back and decide that she's going to slice him to pieces anyway so he does as she says and shakes Tobirama awake.

"Izuna, what do you want?" The albino mumbles sleepily.

"I think your cousin may kill me if you don't get up, so please get up so we can take a bath and get dressed before she gets back." Izuna says, a bit of panic creeping into his tone.

Tobirama jumps out of bed. " _Touka_ was here?"

"If that's her name, then yes. Please tell me she wasn't serious about cutting both my hands off." Izuna says as he slides out of bed as well.

Tobirama strokes the back of his neck awkwardly. "I mean… I'm somewhat surprised I didn't wake up to her skinning you alive so…" 

"Bath. Now." Izuna barks, "She's coming back soon."

They share the tub to conserve time, but they still don't get presentable until Touka is already back. She's pouring out three cups of tea when they come down the stairs.

Tobirama trots forward and meets her in a clinging embrace that lasts for several very awkward seconds as Izuna just stands there. Finally he pulls away and starts patting her down.

"I'm not injured anywhere Tobira. I already promised not to hide wounds from you anymore." She says, slightly bemused.

"One time was enough," Tobirama says in a harsh whisper. He finishes checking her for wounds before he steps out of her space.

"Are you done?" She asks, plopping down into an armchair and stretching out her back.

Tobirama nods and shuffles to the sofa opposite her. Izuna slowly moves to his side when beckoned and sits down, nervously brushing his hair over his ear.

"So," Touka starts as she leans her head on her fist, "he says he loves you. Uchiha aren't the type to lie about something like that, even under duress. But you two must have been doing things like _this_ ," she pauses to give a wide gesture at both of them, "for quite awhile for that to be the case. What gives, Tobi, why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't think there was anything to tell until recently. We have had some miscommunication about our relationship. But a lot happened while you were gone." Tobirama says.

Touka tilts her head and raises an eyebrow in question. 

Tobirama sighs and begins recounting events, some Izuna was there for and others that he wasn't. He describes in detail being wrongfully accused of murdering the little Nara girl, being sealed unconscious and taken to prison without being given a chance to defend himself, a Nara shinobi being the one to come wake him and tell him he was going to be executed, and finally, of Izuna's determination to get the truth, nearly at the cost of his own life. 

Izuna's cheeks begin to warm when he hears how Tobirama speaks of him.

Touka is silent for a long time after the explanation and then finally she leans back and heaves out a sigh, "I'm going to _castrate_ that tree-headed freak."

She then stands and falls into a deep bow in front of Izuna, "Uchiha Izuna, you have my sincere apologies for my threatening you earlier, and my sincere gratitude for clearing my baby cousin's name. I would have been devastated to return and find that he had been executed while I was too far away to help him."

Izuna is absolutely flabbergasted but he nods anyway and replies, "No problem. I would never have let him be killed for a crime he did not commit."

Touka settles back in her seat, "Your loyalty is respectable, but I am obligated to tell you that if you hurt my cousin in any way, there are no gods that can save you from my wrath if I find out."

"I believe you." He says faintly, "I saw the bruises you gave Hikaku during the war."

Touka chuckles, "Hikaku?"

"The Uchiha who you swore was a masochist for challenging you everytime we fought them." Tobirama supplies with a grin.

"Ah! He did make for quite a nice punching bag. Is he still around? Looking for him after the treaty slipped my mind." Touka says almost wistfully.

Izuna raises both his eyebrows. This woman is honestly incredible.

"Healthy as a horse. He's married and has a kid now, but I'm certain he'd love to spar with you if you asked." Izuna says.

"You would volunteer your clanmate to a beat down?" Touka asks.

Izuna shrugs, "He's my cousin actually. If you hurt him for no reason, I would happily gut you, but if he loses a sparring match to you, that's his problem not mine." 

Touka actually bursts into laughter at that, "I like him Tobi! I'm glad you developed good taste after so many duds." 

Tobirama groans, "Touka, not this again."

Izuna smiles watching them banter about failed past loves. _This_ is what a sibling relationship should be. Izuna is incredibly glad that Tobirama knows that love after all, even if it is given by a cousin instead of his brother.

* * *

It is in the market that Izuna finally gets to speak to an ethereal woman with blood red hair, and even then, it is only because she sought him and his partner out on her own one evening.

"Sorry to disturb you both," she says, and even her voice is poised, "but I was hoping to have a word with the two of you over tea."

Izuna glances at Tobirama's blank guarded expression before giving an answer, "Sure."

Mito doesn't say another word until they are settled in a little tea shop. The place seems deserted other than the staff and Izuna's guard goes up as well despite his magnetism to this woman.

"I will be frank," Mito says as she toys with the steaming cup in front of her, "I worry that my husband-to-be may already be spoken for."

Izuna immediately scowls, thoughts flashing to a letter written from the heart of a man who knew he was doomed. Surely, Mito must be mistaken, or she means someone else. It has been three whole years since Madara's death, two since Hashirama was given Madara's letter. Surely, the Hokage has worked his way past the worst of that mourning and is moving on with Mito.

Tobirama has a darker scowl on his face, "What makes you believe that?"

Mito sips her tea before answering, "He has a painting of a lovely young man with what almost appears to be a small shrine around it at his bedside. When I asked who it was, he would not answer me beyond telling me it was Uchiha Madara. That's a name he mumbles in his sleep often as well. I was hoping you may know the man Uchiha-Sama, given that it is a name from your clan."

Izuna feels Tobirama's gaze fall onto him as he grimaces from the formal address, "Just Izuna is fine. Yes, I know who you are talking about. Uchiha Madara was my elder brother's name, but I think you need not fear competition from beyond the grave. He was killed in the clan wars."

"I see. I apologize if I have opened old wounds, it was not my intention. I was asking so that I might tell the man I would step aside if he was already… but I suppose not then, no. I apologize again Uch- Izuna. For your loss and my digging up the past." Mito stumbles through that explanation, losing a bit of her composure.

"It's alright, really. You could not have known unless you asked." Izuna says.

"If I may ask a question now," Tobirama pipes up, "is Anija truly giving you reason enough to believe that he was unfaithful, or is it that you do not want to marry him?"

Mito remains composed, but there's a flash of anger in her intelligent eyes, "I was worried that the man I was to marry may have already been in love with someone else. There was no faith between us yet to be broken. I simply did not want to enter a marriage like this one already standing no chance of developing a loving relationship. Now, I think I will take my leave."

She struts off without another word, leaving Izuna and Tobirama to their thoughts.

* * *

Izuna is slightly nervous as he pushes into the Hokage's office, where Hashirama sits alone scratching away at paperwork with his pen. He doesn't understand the feeling, it is not like he gives a damn what this man thinks of him, or really about what he thinks at all after the way he has treated Tobirama. Still, the unsettled feeling remains as he walks up to the desk and leans against the wall near it trying to appear relaxed when in reality, his hackles are raised from the anxiety.

"Can I help you Izuna?" He asks politely.

Izuna normally avoids being alone with him, so he doesn't blame the man for putting his guard up as well. Especially not given the amount of anger in his heart right now for the man. Tobirama has been agonizing over him for weeks now, wondering why the man wouldn't offer him any sort of explanation, and then he found out that Hashirama is still mourning Madara, which only served to drive that thorn of abandonment deeper into the albino's heart. 

"Your fiance told me something weird the other day." Izuna says, keeping his tone dry. It is best not to beat around the bush with Hashirama. He may not be truly stupid, but he is surely capable of acting like it.

"Mito? I didn't know you two talked." Hashirama says with a pleasant lilt in his voice and a smile that does nothing to cover the darkened gleam in his eyes.

"Yes, you have been trying to keep us from talking to each other, that's for certain." Izuna accuses, though his instincts are telling him to get away from the man, "She came to me concerned that you were taken already by someone in my clan. She said she thought that because you keep a little shrine to him at your bedside, and that you call for him in your sleep. She came to me, wondering where to find _Uchiha Madara_ , because she wanted to tell him that she was willing to step aside for you two to be together."

"She… did what?" Hashirama almost growls.

Izuna huffs, "Would you like to explain that to me? I am sincerely confused."

The dark circles under the Hokage's eyes get more pronounced. "I still miss him is all Izuna. I can't… reconcile with the fact that he's not here because of me. I have nightmares, and I talk in my sleep sometimes, apparently. It's not… I can't control it, and you can't ask me not to mourn."

"No, I can't ask you not to mourn. But I can ask you to be honest with your wife-to-be next time so she doesn't come to me asking me where my dead brother is. If all that it is is that you are grieving for him still, then why did you not just say that to her?" Izuna demands.

"What was I supposed to say, Izuna?!" Hashirama screams as he stands up and bangs his hands on his desk causing plants to spring to life all over the room, "Oh him? That's just the first person I ever fell in love with! Don't worry, he is dead because I killed him! Oh hey, want to hop into bed with someone who killed his best friend, couldn't protect one little girl, and almost put his own brother to death for no reason?"

Izuna recoils at that. Maybe he has been a little harsh. Maybe he is guilty of the same thing everyone else is, he forgot Senju Hashirama is not really a god, he is just a man, and he's apparently one that's breaking under the weights of leadership and grief.

"Tobirama will forgive you in a second if you just stop ignoring him and talk to him like he matters. No one could have saved that little girl. I already forgave you, and Madara told you in his letter that you were forgiven before you even did anything." Izuna says, "When are you going to forgive yourself so you can move on?"

He keeps his distance from the Hokage as he is unsure whether or not another outburst is coming. The man bows his head, shaking uncontrollably. 

"You don't understand," the Hokage mumbles, "No one does. This was supposed to be his peace as well. Madara is supposed to be here."

"If you think there is anyone who understands that better than I do, then they should force you to step down from the Hokage's seat, because you're obviously to stupid to have it." Izuna snarls before turning on his heel and leaving. Infuriating _bastard_. Why did Madara like him?!

* * *

Izuna feels a nearly unbearable weight on his shoulders as he lays a bouquet of flowers on the grave of the little girl whose life was extinguished far too soon. He has been meaning to come here for a long time, but it took him months to compile his thoughts enough that it felt right to do so.

"I'm going to protect them. The defenseless and the innocent, like you. That is my promise to you. Your life will not be lost in vain." He whispers to cold stone.

"Izuna," Tobirama says as he lands lightly beside the Uchiha. Like clockwork as always, Izuna knew his partner would come to check on him soon. "You've been here a long time. It's going to rain soon."

Izuna shakes his head, "Trust me, the storm is still nearly two hours away."

"Are you going to stand out here until it comes? Let's go home. It's late, you may catch a cold." 

"I'm thinking." 

"In a graveyard." Tobirama deadpans. When Izuna doesn't respond he crosses his arms and sighs out, "About what?"

"Balance." Izuna says turning around just a bit so Tobirama can see the Mangekyo twirling lazily in his irises and know his turmoil on this matter is bone deep, "Balance, harmony, and peace. About what they mean, and what I want them to mean, and the differences between the beautiful lie and the ugly truth."

Tobirama stays silent, opting to listen.

"In theory, this village was a good idea. But my brother, and yours, had a dream much greater, one that I never truly understood until recently." Izuna says returning his gaze to the stormy horizon, "They wanted a world where graves are never so small as this one is. A reality for us to live in where a family of five brothers wouldn't be cut down to just one before that one even turned twenty. They wanted peace, for us to flourish and live perfectly happy in, peace to protect the next group of little ones in line. A perfect little world." 

Tobirama shifts his feet, "It is not a bad dream."

"It's impossible is all." Izuna says drawing a concerned gaze from his partner, prompting him to explain clearer what he means, "No part of the world will ever be perfect. Darkness and hatred will always exist in the world so long as light and love do. Humans are horrible, violent creatures with short memories. Eventually, the next generations will only know war through stories we pass them, and they'll grow without being able to understand that horror and pain. They will become restless, and overzealous. They will start new wars over money, or power, or religion, whatever excuse they choose. People will die, children included, and humans, as imperfect as they are, will be led astray once again by grief and hatred. The cycle will continue, the only difference now is the scale."

"So… you don't believe in Konoha?" Tobirama says carefully. 

And Izuna knows what a complicated situation Tobirama would be in if he said no. The albino loves him dearly, he is sure of that, but he knows that Tobirama will always do what is best for the bigger picture. He is not focused on a perfect world to the point of negligence as his brother is, he knows such a world is impossible, but he is loyal to Konoha above all else because he believes it can protect what he holds dear to his heart. The Will of Fire as his brother calls it is strong in him. Personally, Izuna thinks blind devotion to an ideal such as that one is dangerous, but he keeps that to himself. Still as to if he believes in Konoha…

"As the ideal your brother wants so say it is? No. But as to what it truly is? Absolutely." Izuna answers.

"And what is it to you?"

"It is a means to an end. People only gather in mass when they have something in common. For clans, it is blood, but to get clans to gather, there has to be a bigger common. That's what Konoha is. It will compile all of the small conflicts into one, but that is all. It is not a miracle, it won't stop wars in the future." Izuna says, "It does offer protection for the weak, however. For the young, the old, and the sick. It is a way that we can offer a choice to little ones on whether or not they want to become soldiers. That's what I believe in. If there are graves as tiny as this girl's in the world, they should not be dug because of violence inside the place meant to provide protection."

"What are you getting at?" Tobirama asks.

Izuna absentmindedly twirls the end of his ponytail around his index finger, "When your brother steps down from the Hokage's seat, who is most likely to take his place?"

Tobirama falls silent once more.

"You, right?" Izuna says.

"Izuna, if you are worried about the Uchiha-" 

"I'm not. I worked very hard on precautions for them. Besides, I had them help build things other than their own compound for a reason, they are attached to this place as a whole, and they are integrated well with the other clans now."

"Than what-"

"What will your job be when you take your brother's place?"

"Protecting the village, and everyone in it."

"From?"

"From… threats?"

" _Foreign_ threats." Izuna clarifies, "From things stalking Konoha for its resources and power. But who protects the inside?"

"The shinobi of course."

"Shinobi are soldiers. They answer to the government and to clans. To have them protecting the inside from everything _including_ the government and clans would be a conflict of interests."

"So you mean… enforcing laws?"

"That, and making sure justice is served. Making sure the right man suffers for the crime. I want to make a new faction for that function, but I need you to help me do it."

"That makes sense in theory, but…" Tobirama trails off thoughtfully.

"I don't understand what you don't understand." Izuna half growls, tired of trying to explain himself, "We need someone to keep the peace here. To deter criminals, and catch them when determent is not enough. You cannot expect everyone in this village to act civilized just because they are here."

Tobirama opens his mouth and then closes it again, contemplating.

"If the Hokage's will is fire, that makes him the sun. Everyone reveres the sun. But there has to be balance. There has to be a moon for them to revere when there is no other light. And sometimes, the moon eclipses the sun. Let me eclipse you in this." Izuna says, hoping he was understood this time.

Tobirama is pensive for a few more moments before he finally places a hand on Izuna's shoulder and says, "Alright, I'm with you. We will get this up and running together."

Izuna smiles, "Thank you."

Storm clouds hang heavy overhead as Izuna takes Tobirama's hand, and cold wind whips their hair around in all directions. Izuna knows something is coming on the horizon, and he will do his best to brace himself and his home and hope that's enough to keep safe the life he's so painstakingly built.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave me your comments and kudos so that I may turn them into inspiration!!!!


End file.
